trying to hard or not getting enough done. My eldest will try anything (except writing) and with a willing heart and tries to please me...the youngest...well, he has an arguement about everything. (but wrote a report in a week what it took his older brother 3 weeks to do) We just took a trip to Tucson...and my plan was two light days in the car, with a field trip for the day we were in Tucson...the field trip day was ok, but they fussed and whined about the very tiny itty bitty bit of work for Wed or today. I am tempted to make them work tomorrow. The public school was off for Thur. and Fri, so they think I should let them off. (we are about 10 days ahead of the PS) Should I let them do that? or am I setting a bad precedent? I don't know. I often feel torn between feeling like I am not doing enough...we didn't get to Spanish again! or the writing assignment that I think should take a week and ends up taking 3. But still isn't at grade level.... (it is so much easier to "not worry about grade level" when they are ahead, rather than behind.) But then when we are still doing schoolwork at 5pm and I can't remember if they got a 45 min break anywhere..............
Welcome to the #1 homeschooling dilemma! I think 99% of the homeschooling parents I know could have written this part. I have so been there and back...and there again!!! My daughter was ahead in everything but math is probably more like at grade level, if I did grade levels but.... I don't do grade levels. Whew! That takes the pressure off right? Well,...NO! I still think about those standards in the back of my mind, too. Take advise from the little green man (or whatever he was): "You must unlearn what you have learned." then "Do or do not. There is no try." as in: Homeschool or homeschool not. There is no trying to fit standards. Now what is it that each of your children do brilliantly that shows how talented they really are that has nothing to do with grade levels? That is where I start. My daughter is brilliant at piano, years ahead for her age, and so much so we have difficulty finding music that is advanced and challenging, yet is not beyond her hand span. It has nothing to do with grade levels at all. She is gifted with languages, learning both Latin and Greek even though she is only 8 yo. Again, nothing to do with public school standards and grade levels. So what if she does end up getting "behind" in math? Those "standards" are not the standards that fit my daughter. And I am pretty sure your children's standards do not fit public school standards or whatever standards you are using to measure them against too. So what? It is like putting them against the wall and marking it to measure their height. Are they supposed to grow as tall as the wall is? Do you know how tall they are going to be so you know how much more they need to grow? Education is not something that really can be standardized. Let it go and enjoy homeschooling.
You sound so much like my brain at times! Do we really need to stand up to limus test ourselves against the ps? The amount of time we spend with each of our children's instruction is more than they get there so you are of course ahead. But the days you choose to take off are your choice. I went through the strict days of school thing for a few years then one year I Realised I can do what I want! My kdis go to school more days than the public school kids do, big deal. I realised that since they did not get teacher isntruction day off here or there that when I felt ds or dd needed a break today I could say .. okay finish that problem and you are done! Or totally shock thier socks off with, we are not doing school today I am taking a teacher day! They loved that one! once in a while you will want days off just for fun. You can do that! LOok how many days of the year your local ps is out and you are working because your having fun on a project in Science or whatnot. Dont worry about too much or too little time spent or days done, just do what works for you!
You know, I'm three years into this and I still struggle with those questions. "Keeping up" is so ingrained in me; I am surprised at how difficult it has been to change my way of thinking. I hear that some schooled child is excelling at something my son struggles with and I immediately question what I'm doing wrong. It's hard to focus on what we're all doing right! We usually try to take some of the PS's days off, because of the boys' friends who go to school who are off those days. Their homeschool co-op also follows the PS calendar for holidays. But we're about to take several weeks to a month off when I have this baby. I still giggle a bit at all the non-HS'ers who hear that and are like, "WHAT??? You can DO that???" Yep, we sure can, and I think we're all going to enjoy (and NEED) the break!
I know I know...we are homeschooling just for the reason that I think if ds1 was in ps he would be failing. or I would be doing all his work. sigh. He is very good in math. His reading is really improving. He enjoys reading and has pretty much loved the literature books I have chosen. Writing is a struggle. and it is a struggle for me too because, and I really didn't realize this, but I don't know exactly what it is I do...I just write. So to break it down in small enough steps is difficult. With the girls and ds2 I can just say write a paragraph...and then maybe correct for spelling and point out that this sentance would work better with a differerent adj. or whatever. With ds2 it is working on each sentance...spelling, structure, interest, EVERYthing. He does not narrate well either. I do not make him do much fiction writing, he tends to do slightly better with factual papers. I have a book on research reports, it is geared toward the classroom, but I have used it with the boys so that helps some. He is pretty convinced he will not need this skill in life. And I do not doubt that he is probably correct. I rarely write for work, his father doesn't (either as a plumber or a banker) But I know for school it will be important. (College) and I really want him to go to college. deep breath. Maybe it is like the reading, the more he does the better it will get. double sigh.
